Imide containing blends and polymeric compositions prepared therefrom

ABSTRACT

RESINS ARE OBTAINED, WHICH HAVE GOOD RESISTANCE TO MECHANICAL DEFORMATION AT ELEVATED TEMPERATURES AND GOOD ADHESION TO INORGANIC MATERIALS S UCH AS METALS AND CERAMICS, FROM BLENDS OF EPOXIDE AND IMIDE CONTAINING OR DERIVED COMPOUNDS. THESE RESINS ARE PARTICULARLY USEFUL FOR MAKING COMPOSITE MATERIALS AND MOLDED ARTICLES.

r 3,763,087 Ice Patented Oct. 2, 1973 DE CONTA G3,l7;6Iil::(l7)S AND POL RIC wherein Y is the residue of the reaction product of a 1M] ININ YME 1 f COMPOSITIONS PREPARED THEREFROM gl fiz g i gg ig g Fred F. Holub, Schenectady, N.Y., and John T. Hoback, p y y P ese esms are Wn an Easton, Pa., assignors to General Electric Company commercially available. Typical phenols useful in the No Drawing. Filed Nov. 19,/1971, Ser. No. 200,590 5 preparation of the resin are resorcinol and various bis- Int. Cl. C08f 15 00, 45/04 h 1 1t f th d t' f h 1 th p enos resu mg rom e con ensa ion 0 p eno WI 260 41 R 8 Claims aldehydes and ketones such as formaldehyde, acetalde- ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE hyde, and acetone. Representative of the bisphenols is Resins are obtained which have ood resistance to 10 Lzflbis(p-hydroxyphenynpmpane (known as Bisphenol g A); 4,4-dihydroxydiphenylsulfone; 4,4'-dihydroxy bimechanical deformation at elevated temperatures and good adhesion to inorganic materials such as metals and Phenyl 3 "d1hydroxydlphenylmethane 'dlhydroxydl' phenyloxide, etc.

ceramics, from blends of epoxide and imide containing or derived compounds. These resins are particularly use- The P Y resin useful for most applications in formful for making composite materials and molded articles. ing the blends used in the practice of the present invention corresponds to the general formula:

This invention is concerned with improved polymeric wherein R is a divalent radical selected from the group compositions prepared from blends of epoxides and consisting of saturated alkylene radicals of from 1 to 8 imides. More particularly the invention relates to comcarbon atoms, oxygen, and the sulfone group, y is 0 or positions of matter comprising (a) a first member selected an integer having a value up to 25 and n is 0 or 1. Specififrom the group consisting of an epoxy resin and the reaccally, R may be methylene, ethylene, propylene, isoprotion product of a monocarboxylic unsaturated acid and pylene, isopropylidene, butylene, isobutylene, etc. an epoxy resin; and (b) a second member selected from The most common epoxy resin of this type is the reacthe group consisting of a bisimide, the reaction product tion product of epichlorohydrin and Bisphenol A which of a diamine with a bisimide, and the reaction product corresponds to the structural formula:

of trimellitic anhydride with a diamine to form an amidewherein y has the meaning given above. imide diamine. The composition is cured in the presence The instant epoxy resin may also be an epoxy novolac of a diamine and/or in the presence of a free radical resin. These resins are commercially available and correcatalyst. spond to the formula:

(IV) o\ o\ /o\ ooH,o oH, o-oH,-oom 0CH;GHCH;

l CH. @CH.

The epoxy resins used in the present invention are wherein y has the value given above. Commercially avallable and have the general formula: An epoxy resin is formed from tetraphenylol (I) O o ethane and epichlorohydrin is also suitable. An inter- 3 mediate from which this resin is prepared is illustrated by the formula:

(VI) (C Ha) (CH OH OCO (C H (CH )O Other examples include vinyl cyclohexane dioxide and dipentene dioxide.

The instant epoxy resin may be liquid or solid. It generally has an epoxy equivalent in the range of 100 to 4000 and preferably from 150 to 450. The epoxy equivalent weight is the weight of resin in grams which contain one gram equivalent of epoxy.

In preparing the blend of the present invention, the epoxy resin may be added directly to the bisimide to form a curable mixture. It may also be incorporated into the blend as an epoxy derivative by reacting the epoxy with a monocarboxylic unsaturated acid to form a vinyl ester. These epoxy derivatives and a method of preparing them are described in US. Pat. 3,535,403 to Holub et a1. and assigned to the assignee of the present application.

Any monocarboxylic unsaturated acid can be used to form the epoxy derivative. A suitable acid corresponds to the formula:

wherein R is a monovalent radical selected from the group consisting of hydrogen, an alkyl radical of from 1 to 8 carbon atoms, a halogen atom and an aromatic radical, R" is a divalent saturated aliphatic radical of from 1 to 3 carbon atoms and m is 0 or 1. R, for example, may be methyl, ethyl, propyl, phenyl, chloro, etc. Typical examples of R include methylene, ethylene, etc. Representative of these acids are acrylic acid, methacrylic acid, u-phenylacrylic acid, a-chloroacrylic acid, vinyl acetic acid, etc. The reaction of the unsaturated acid with the epoxy resin forms a secondary hydroxyl group and also introduces unsaturated terminal groups. In simplified form, using only the epoxy group for reference, it may be prewherein R, R" and m have the meanings above.

The imide portion of the blend is supplied by a bisimide, the reaction product of a diamine with a bisimide or the reaction product of trimellitic anhydride with a diamine to form an amide-imide. The bis mide has the general formula:

wherein R is a member selected from the class consisting of:

and

groupings, and halogenated derivatives, Q is a member selected from the group consisting of alkylene containing from 2-20 carbon atoms, cycloalkylene, alkylcycloalkylene, xylylene, phenylene, lower alkylphenylene,

an ea wherein Z is a member selected from the group consisting of divalent aliphatic, cycloaliphatic or araliphatic (having l-8 carbon atoms),

X is a member of the class consisting of hydrogen, halogen, and the methyl radical, and m is 0 or 1.

The organic diamines useful in the present invention may be represented by the general formula:

wherein Q is defined by the same radicals as Q set forth hereinabove. Typical of such diamines are the following:

m-phenylene diamine, p-phenylenediamine, 4,4'-diaminodiphenylpropane, 4,4-diaminodiphenylmethane, benzidine, 4,4'-diaminodiphenyl sulfide, 4,4-diaminodiphenyl sulfone, 4,4-diaminodiphenyl ether, 1,5-diaminonaphthalene, 3,3'-dimethylbenzidine, 3,3'-dimethoxybenzidine, 2,4-bis(B-amino-t-butyl)toluene, bis (p-fl-amino-t-butylphenyl ether, bis (p-B-methyl-o-aminopentyl)benzene, 1,3-diamino-4 isopropylbenzene, 1,2-bis (3 -aminopropoxy) ethane, m-xylylenediamine, p-xylylenediamine, bis (4-aminocyclohexyl)methane, decamethylenediamine, 3-methylheptamethylenediamine, 4,4-dimethylheptamethylenediamine, 2,1 l-dodecanediamine, 2,2-dimethylpropylenediamine,

octamethylenediamine, 3-methoxyhexamethylenediamine, 2,5-dimethylhexamethylenediamine, 2,5-dimethylheptamethylenediamine, 3-methylheptamethylenediamine, S-methylnonamethylenediamine, 1,4-cyclohexanediamine, 1,12-octadecanediamine, bis(3-aminopropyl)sulfide, N-methy1-bis( 3-aminopropyl) amine, hexamethylenediamine, heptamethylenediamine, nonamethylenediamine,

and mixtures thereof. It should be noted that these diamines are given merely for the purpose of illustration and are not considered to be all inclusive. Other diamines not mentioned will readily be apparent to those skilled in the art.

Having described the bisimide and the diamine, the reaction product of the bisimide and the diamine can occur in various ratios from 1:1 to 2:1 respectively. An illustration wherein the ratio is 2:1 is represented by the general formula:

wherein R, Q and Q are as described hereinabove (the Q radical derived from the diamine is frequently not the same as the Q derived from the bisimide) and R"" is the same as R' with the exception that a primary amino group from the diamine has been reacted with double bond of the imide group. Other polymeric forms which fall Within the prescribed range of ratios are more complicated. A particular useful unsaturated amide imide is one prepared from 2.5 moles of bismaleimide with 1 mole of methylene dianiline.

As a further embodiment of our invention, the epoxy resin may be blended with the reaction product of trimellitic anhydride with a diamine as illustrated by the following formula:

wherein Q is as defined hereinabove.

The ratio of the diepoxide to the bisimide in the blend may vary over a wide range and will depend to some extent on the terminal functional groups on the compounds being reacted. Thus, in one type of polymerization 90 mole percent of the epoxy arcrylate may be reacted with 10-90 mole percent of a bisor poly-unsaturated imide in the presence of a peroxide catalyst. In another type of polymerization, 25-75 mole percent of the diepoxide may be reacted with 25-75 mole percent of an amine containing poly-unsaturated imide usually in the presence of an amine curing agent.

To prepare the composition of the present invention, conventional techniques can be used to produce a blend of the epoxide and imide containing compounds and any other ingredients including copolymerizable compounds, fillers, pigments, etc. For example, the components can be admixed by hot milling on a mill or a mixer. If the free radical source is an organic peroxide, it can be milled at the same time with the other components.

The composition is then shaped by any conventional method to the desired form before curing. The shaped composition is cured by a free radical radical mechanism and any source of free radicals can be used including organic peroxides as well as actinic radiation. Curing can also be effected at elevated temperatures in an oxygen containing atmosphere.

Organic peroxides having a decomposition point in excess of about C. are preferred in order to minimize loss of peroxide during the elevated milling temperatures used. The preferred peroxides are dicumyl peroxide and od-bis(t-butylperoxy)diisopropylbenzene. Other useful peroxides include benzoyl peroxide, dibenzoyl peroxide, di-t-butylperoxide, t-butylbenzoyl peroxide, cumene hydroperoxide, and lauroyl peroxide. Also effective are the azo compounds, such as azobis-isobutyronitrile. The amount of catalyst may vary widely. Generally the catalyst can be used in an amount of 0.0l-5.0% by weight of the total polymer blend.

Fillers, pigments and dyes may be used in making the polymer blend of the present invention. The fillers may be in the form of particles or fibers. Typical fillers include ground ceramics, glass, silica, quartz, mica, treated clays, titanium dioxide, boron nitride, graphite, carbon black, glass fibers, asbestos fibers, and metal powders such as iron powder, copper powder or aluminum powder. The amount of filler used depends on the particular properties of the composition desired. Filler in amounts of up to about 300 percent by weight of the polymer composition may be used.

In the compounding of the present compositions, other modifying materials which do not have a detrimental effect on the properties of the cured composition, such as antioxidants, heat stabilizers, and lubricants may be included. The blending and heat curing of the composition can be varied widely. Thus, the curing temperatures may vary from -250 C. for a time of 1 minute to 2 hours or more. Molding pressures of 5 psi. to 5000 psi. or more may be used. Any conventional molding technique such as compression molding, extrusion, injection,

etc., may be employed.

In order to reduce cost and to modify some of the properties of the cured polymer, such as hardness, stiffness, and ultraviolet resistance, various aliphatically unsaturated compounds containing up to 3 or more unsaturated groups per molecule such as chlorostyrene, methylmethacrylate, methyl acrylate, diallylphthalate, triallyl cyanurate, triallyl isocyanurate, maleimido-substituted polybenzylene, ect., may be substituted in an amount up to 80 weight percent for the epoxy acrylate.

In order that those skilled in the art may better understand how the present invention may be practiced, the following examples are given by way of illustration and not by way of limitation. All cut'through tests were conducted in the manner described in US. Pat. 2,936,296.

EXAMPLE I A mixture of 10 parts by weight of an epoxy resin (prepared from epichlorohydrin and Bisphenol A having a viscosity of 100-160 poises at 25 C. and an epoxy equivalent of 185-192), 2 parts by weight of a bismaleimide (prepared from maleic anhyride and p,p'-methylenedianiline hereinafter designated as BMI), 2 parts by weight of m-phenylene diamine was blended together with 0.02 part by weight of dicumyl peroxide catalyst at a temperature of 80 C. The reaction product was cast into a film and cured at C. for 2 hours. The cured film was flexible and had a cut-through temperature of 315 C.

EXAMPLE II Following the procedure of Example I, a film was prepared from 10 parts by weight of the epoxy resin of Example I, 5 parts by weight of BMI, 2 parts by weight of m-phenylene diamine by blending together with 0.05

7 part by weight of dicumyl peroxide at a temperature of 80 C. The cured film was flexible and had a cut-through temperature of 250 C.

EXAMPLE III Following the procedure of Example I, 10 parts by weight of the epoxy resin of Example I and parts by weight of an amide-imide diamine having the formula:

(XIII) was blended at a temperature of 80 C. The product was cast into a film and cured at 160 C. for 2 hours. The cured film was flexible and had a cut-through temperature of 350 C.

EXAMPLE IV Following the procedure of Example III, a film was prepared from parts by weight of the epoxy resin of Example I and 2 parts by weight of the amide-imide diamine of Example III at a temperature of 80 C. The cured film was flexible and had a cut-through temperature of 340 C.

EXAMPLE V Following the procedure of Example I, 10 parts by Following the procedure of Example VII, a film was prepared from a mixture of 10 parts by weight of the epoxy resin, 5 parts by weight of BMI, 2 parts by weight of m-phenylene diamine, by blending at 80 C. with 0.05 part by weight of dicumyl peroxide. The film, cured at 160 C. for 2 hours, Was flexible and had a cut-through temperature of 350 C.

EXAMPLE XI A mixture of 21.5 parts by weight of epoxy acrylate resin (the product formed by reacting methacrylic acid With an epoxy resin of Example I), 21.5 parts by weight of the bismaleimide of Example VI, 100 parts by weight of A" glass fibers and 1 part by weight of dicumyl peroxide was milled at room temperature and then cured at 165 C. for 10 minutes. The resulting product had a weight of epoxy resin of Example I, 2 parts by weight of flexural strength of 15,000, a flexural modulus of (XI V) i [pew-ope and 2 parts by weight of m-phenylenediamine was blended together with 0.02 part by weight of dicumyl peroxide. The cured film was flexible and had a cut-through temperature of 330 C.

EXAMPLE VI Following the procedure of Example I, a mixture of 10 parts by weight of the epoxy resin, 2 parts by weight mphenylene diamine and 2 parts by weight of a bismaleimide prepared by reacting 2.5 moles of BMI with 2 moles of p,p'-methylene dianiline was blended together at a temperature of 80 C. The reaction product was cast into a film and cured at 160 C. for 2 hours. The cured film was flexible and had a cut-through temperature of 350 C.

EXAMPLE VII Following the procedure of Example VII, a mixture of 10 parts by weight of the epoxy resin, 2 parts by weight of BMI and 2.7 parts by weight of p,p'-methylene dianiline was blended together at 80 C. The reaction product was cast into a film and cured at 160 C. for 2 hours. The cured film was flexible and had a cut-through temperature of 325 C.

EXAMPLE VIII Following the procedure of Example VII, a mixture of 10 parts by weight of the epoxy resin, 2 parts by weight of BMI and 5.4 parts by weight of p,p-methylene dianiline was blended together at 80 C. The reaction product was cast into a film and cured at 160 C. for 2 hours. The cured film was flexible and had a cut-through temperature of 240 C.

EXAMPLE IX Following the procedure of Example VII, a mixture of 10 parts by weight of the epoxy resin, 2 parts by weight of BMI, 2 parts by weight of m-phenylene diamine was blended together with 0.02 part by weight of dicumylperoxide at a temperature of 80 C. The reaction product 2.24 10 and a heat distortion temperature of 250 C. at 264 p.s.i.

EXAMPLE XII Following the procedure of Example XII, a mixture of 20 parts by weight of an epoxy acrylate resin, 20 parts by weight of bismaleimide (prepared from maleic anhydride and p,p'-methylene dianiline), 5 parts by weight triallyl cyanurate, 94 parts by weight of glass fibers, and 1 part by weight of dicumyl peroxide is milled at room temperature and then cured at C. for 10 minutes. The resulting product is a solid thermosetting material useful for electrical insulation purposes.

EXAMPLE XIV Following the procedure of Example XII, 20 parts by weight of an epoxy resin of Example I, 20 parts by weight of the reaction product of BMI and p,p'-methylene dianiline of Example VI, and 94 parts by weight of glass fibers was milled at room temperature and then cured at 165 C. for 1 hour. The resulting product had a flexural strength of 19,300 p.s.i., a flexural modulus of 2.21 X 10 p.s.i.

EXAMPLE XV Following the procedure of Example XII, a mixture of 5 parts by weight of the epoxy acrylate, 20 parts by I C t and 0.5 part of dicumyl peroxide was stirred in a glass beaker to yield a heterogeneous dispersion. The dispersion was cast on an aluminum substrate. The coated aluminum was then cured at a temperature of 150- 160 C. for minutes to yield a clear adherent film which was crosslinked and solvent resistant, since the film did not dissolve in toluene.

It will be appreciated that the invention is not limited to the specific details shown in the examples and illustrations and that various modifications may be made within the ordinary skill in the art without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention.

We claim:

1. A composition of matter comprising (1) a reaction product of an unsaturated monocarboxylic acid corresponding to the formula:

0 ll CH =CR"m OH wherein R' is a monovalent radical selected from the group consisting of hydrogen, an alkyl radical of 1-8 carbon atoms, halogen and an aromatic radical,

O OH O H msatoimttwin O CH. tH CH. 0 h s,

t L J.

R" is a divalent alkylene radical of 1-3 carbon atoms, and m is 0 or 1, and an epoxy resin selected from the group consisting of a polyglycidyl ether of a polyhydric phenol and an epoxidized olefin, and (2) a bisimide having the general formula:

o o 3 II o wherein R'" is a member selected from the class consisting of i g" l.

on, 7 oh orr H CH3 and f5 an; H OH- OH )(JH- on 3)m groupings, and halogenated derivatives, Q is a member selected from the group consisting of alkylene containing from 2-20 carbon atoms, cycloalkylene,

alkylcycloalkylene, xylene, phenylene, lower alkylsisting of divalent aliphatic, cycloaliphatic, or araliphatic (having 1-8 carbon atoms),

and

X is a member of the class consisting of hydrogen, halogen, and the methyl radical, and m is 0 or 1. 2. The composition of claim 1, having incorporated therein 0.01-5.0% by weight of the total polymer blend of an organic peroxide.

3. The composition of claim 2, wherein said organic peroxide is dicumyl peroxide.

4. The composition of claim 3, wherein said organic peroxide is a,a'-bis(t-butyl-peroxy) diisopropylbenzene.

5. The composition of claim 1, wherein said composition is comprised of 10-90 mole percent of an epoxy acrylate having the formula:

CH3 R wherein R is a monovalent radical selected from the group consisting of hydrogen and an alkyl radical of from 1-8 carbon atoms, n is an integer having a value of 1-25, and 10-90 mole percent of a bismaleimide having the formula:

0 Etc-ll .l.

and said composition containing additionally 0.015.0 percent by weight of an organic peroxide catalyst.

6. The composition of claim 5, which has been heat cured at a temperature of 125 -250 C.

7. The composition of claim 5, which has been blended with up to 300 percent by weight of a filler selected from the group consisting of ground ceramics, glass, silica, quartz, mica, clays, titanium dioxide, boron nitride, graphite, carbon black, glass fibers, asbestos fibers, iron powder, copper powder, and aluminum powder.

8. The composition of claim 5, and additionally containing an aliphatically unsaturated organic compound having up to 3 or more unsaturated groups per molecule in an amount up to Weight percent substitution for the epoxy acrylate.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 3,301,743 1/ 1967 Fekete et al. 260-837 R X 3,373,075 3/1968 Fekete et al. 260-837 R X 3,586,530 6/1971 Aronotf et al. 260-837 R X LEWIS T. JACOBS, Primary Examiner US. Cl. X.R. 

